During Dying Matters Awareness Week (May 18-24), the Public Health Agency (PHA) is urging everyone to take the opportunity to talk openly with those closest to them about dying, death and bereavement. This year’s theme is ‘Talk, Plan, Live’ (hashtag #YODO, which stands for You Only Die Once).

Right now, more than 107,000 Americans wait for a life-saving organ transplant. The list grows with another name every 11 minutes, and every day, 18 people on that list die.

One organ donor can save eight people’s lives and a tissue donor can help up to 50 others. The fact remains, however, that there simply aren’t enough organs to save everyone on the waiting list.

Signing up to become a donor is easy — most Americans can designate themselves as donors when they get their drivers license and, in many states, that designation transfers their information to a state database. In the event of their death, organ donation professionals access that database, which begins the process of saving lives.

Making the decision to become a donor is different; it requires a clear understanding of the way donation works — which can prove difficult, given various persistent myths about donation.